Question

What are the steps when finding the distance between (-2, 4) and (7, -6)?

Answer 1

find the linear distance between each of the two coordinates by subtraction
then use pythagoras
disance between \(-2\) and \(7\) is \(7+2=9\)
distance between \(4\) and \(-6\) is \(4+6=10\)
pythagoras gives tells you \(a^2+b^2=d^2\) so
\[d^2=9^2+10^2\] and therefore
\[d=\sqrt{9^2+10^2}=\sqrt{181}\]

Answer 2

many people like formulas, it is
\[d=\sqrt{(x_2-x_1)^2+(y_2-y_1)^2}\]